The present invention relates generally to holsters for handguns, and is particularly concerned with holsters having security devices for reducing the risk of the gun being inadvertently removed from the holster or taken from the holster by an assailant.
There is a need for effective security holsters for use by police officers and others to aid in keeping a handgun securely holstered until and unless the wearer actively withdraws the gun. In the case of law enforcement personnel, such security holsters are needed since a holstered gun may otherwise be taken by an assailant from the holster and used against the officer. Such security mechanisms are desirable in all types of holsters, including belt carried holsters, shoulder holsters, and holsters used in handgun competitions, to reduce the risk of the handgun inadvertently being released from the holster, for example.
One problem with designing an effective security mechanism is that it must reduce the risk of an assailant pulling out the gun easily, but at the same time the officer must be able to draw the gun readily when needed. In the past, security holsters have been designed to grip revolver cylinders, the rear of the trigger guard bow of revolvers, or the front of the trigger guard bow on both pistols and revolvers, and the ejection port of pistols, as well as combinations of these gripping points. Thus, various types of gripping devices are mounted in the holster to grip various parts of the gun, providing passive resistance to the draw. However, these devices have the disadvantage that an assailant can still draw the gun if sufficient force is applied to release it from the gripping device. Additionally, abrasion to the gripping device and/or handgun surfaces may result from repeated forcing of the gun into and out of the device.
It is more difficult to design a gripping device for a pistol than for a revolver, since pistols do not have the projecting trigger guard bow nor the protruding cylinder of a revolver. Thus, most attempts to secure a pistol in a holster have focused on using the inside forward bow of the trigger guard or the ejection port as a gripping surface. For example, a number of prior security devices for holsters included latches which projected into the trigger guard bow and were disengaged by the user releasing the latch using their trigger finger. Such arrangements are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 468,556 of Anderson, 1,113,530 of Audley, 1,851,352 of Denkert, 1,951,865 of Franz, 2,109,734 of Preneta, 2,349,376 of Ray, and 4,934,574 of Salandre. One risk in these types of devices is that release of the latch may lead to accidental discharge, and thus such devices are generally rejected by law enforcement agencies.
Another disadvantage of such latching mechanisms is that their release is often readily apparent to an observer. In one prior design, the holster actually flies open to release the handgun if a button inside the trigger guard is depressed. Thus, if accidentally released by an assailant during a scuffle, the assailant will immediately be aware that the gun can easily be taken. Such holsters are therefore often quite insecure.
The challenge is therefore to provide a security mechanism which allows easy insertion of the pistol into the holster and at the same time helps in preventing the pistol from being forcibly withdrawn from the holster while permitting the pistol to be drawn by the carrier relatively easily. At the same time, the mechanism must not be abraded by the pistol and also must not itself abrade the pistol surfaces.
In a large number of security holster designs, the holster has a fully or partially open front, and the gun is withdrawn by thrusting it forwardly through the front, rather than vertically upwards. However, this presents an inherently "insecure" appearance to a potential assailant and possibly invites such individuals to attempt to withdraw the gun. One example of this type of holster is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,277,007 of Bianchi et al., in which a holster with a spring closed front incorporates a metal spring member having a plastic protrusion mounted at its free end. The protrusion fits into the trigger guard of the pistol, and is designed to prevent upwards draw while allowing the pistol to be pulled forward out of the latch and through the spring-closed holster front. Other front open or opening holsters to allow forward draw are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,846,384 of Perry, 4,925,075 of Rogers, and 5,018,654 of Rogers. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,925,075 of Rogers a spring-biassed catch or boss in the side wall of the holster engages the trigger guard to resist removal of the gun from the holster. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,018,654 of Rogers a restraining device is mounted in the walls of the holster to resist removal of the handgun by pulling up directly. The device has opposing pyramidal bosses which have gently-sloping sides facing the top and back of the holster but sharp perpendicular sides facing the front and bottom of the holster. The gently-curved back face allows the projections to be pushed apart to release the trigger guard if the handgun is first pushed forward, while the sharp sides prevent a direct vertical upward movement.
There are a number of disadvantages to these types of forward draw security mechanisms. One, as mentioned above, is that such holsters are often fully or partially open at the front, presenting an insecure, "please take me" appearance, to the potential detriment of the officer. Another disadvantage is that, because the trigger guard area of a pistol is small, releasing the pistol from a device which statically grips the guard can usually be effected by a very short forward pull, so that a determined assailant may be able to extract the pistol quite easily. The forward draw holster used by law enforcement personnel is well known to many felons, and they are often quite aware of the steps necessary to take pistols from such holsters. Finally, the wear on the security mechanism is often high because of the need to provide a device which will leave the pistol unabraded by repeated drawing and holstering.
Other security holsters are known which provide draw to the rear, but these are subject to similar disadvantages and additionally ignore the potential threat to an officer by attack from the rear.
Some security holsters also incorporate strap systems for retaining the holster in place, either alone or in addition to a trigger guard gripping mechanism. The straps must normally be released by the user before drawing the gun.
The challenge of gripping the pistol has led to some mechanisms which have been excessively bulky, weak, difficult to use, short-lived, or even ineffective. Additionally, more complex systems generally require extensive training for the carrier to be able to use them effectively.